An International missionary's musings as a 'stranger and pilgrim' in, but not of, this world. I am a British citizen, an American citizen, but - above all - a citizen of Heaven and subject of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords - Jesus Christ the Son of the Living God and the Saviour of the world.

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

The Church as Bride of Christ

In
biblical times, wedding customs differed somewhat from what they are
in our culture, but not so much that we cannot relate to the language
Scripture uses. It would help if we were as familiar with arranged
marriages as some of our Christian brothers and sisters are in other
cultures, such as in Central Asia. But since we probably aren't,
let's just review a few things.

A
marriage contract in biblical times was signed by the parents of the
bride and the groom and the parents of the groom (or the groom
himself) would pay a dowry to the bride or her parents. This began
what was called the betrothal period—what we would today call the
engagement. This period was the one Joseph and Mary were in when she
was found to be with child (Matthew 1:18; Luke 2:5).

Arranged
marriages were regarded as very sensible on several levels. Parents
of both parties involved would take great care to ensure that there
was the strongest possible support structure for the marriage, common
world-views, shared cultural and religious backgrounds, and many
other things that would serve to make for a strong marriage –
things that many today neglect in favour of weaker grounds for
marriage, with consequent bad results that are all around us.

One
of the reasons why traditional marriage is being abandoned by so many
today is the high rate of divorce in our culture. The more marriages
fail, the more people despair of the institution of marriage itself,
but that is a different subject.

The
biblical understanding of what marriage is goes together with the
biblical ideal of a bride. A woman who was betrothed to a man in a
first marriage was to be someone who had never been united sexually
to any man. In a similar way, her union with her husband would be as
his
only woman.
She would be uniquely his - until their marriage ended in the death
of either one of them.

You
might be thinking at this point – ah! But what about polygamy in
the Bible. Yes. It is true some men in the Bible did have more than
one wife, but the Bride in each case was held to a separate standard.
No biblical women could have more than one husband at a time. In
that way there would never be any doubt as to the paternity of any
children she might have.

Women
might think that this arrangement was unbalanced, but remember – in
those days, long before DNA-based paternity tests, only such an
arrangement for brides would ensure that the Messiah would be born in
fulfillment of God's promise that He would be a descendant
of Abraham.
In any other arrangement a child's ancestry would be in doubt making
it impossible to prove that God had kept His promise.

So
the imagery of purity and consecration were part of the character of
a Bride and therefore useful as a depiction of the Church to readers
of the Bible.

But,
hang on, you may be saying; how can the Church be a pure and
consecrated virgin to God when the Church is made up of sinners like
you and me? This is where today's second reading comes in. St.
Paul writes to the Ephesians, 'Christ
loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might
sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the
word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor,
without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and
without blemish'.

You
and I, by our sins, are indeed not qualified to be a bride dressed in
white and worthy of being presented to a holy and righteous God as
His beloved, are we? If God were to describe us sinners in a song
that depicted us in all our corruption, covered in the iniquity that
besmirches our faces, the song would sound quite different from what
we heard this evening in the first reading (!)

They
say, 'love is blind', but God would have to be deaf, blind and stupid
not to see how unworthy we are of any association with Him. As
Isaiah wrote, '(God's ears are not dull that He cannot hear)... your
iniquities have made a separationbetween you and your God,and
your sins have hidden his face from youso that he does not
hear.3For
your hands are defiled with bloodand your fingers with
iniquity;your lips have spoken lies;your tongue mutters
wickedness.4No
one enters suit justly;no one goes to law honestly;they rely
on empty pleas, they speak lies,they conceive mischief and give
birth to iniquity.5They
hatch adders’ eggs;they weave the spider’s web;he who
eats their eggs dies,and from one that is crushed a viper is
hatched.6Their
webs will not serve as clothing;men will not cover themselves
with what they make.Their works are works of iniquity,and
deeds of violence are in their hands.7Their
feet run to evil,and they are swift to shed innocent blood;their
thoughts are thoughts of iniquity;desolation and destruction are
in their highways.8The
way of peace they do not know,and there is no justice in their
paths;they have made their roads crooked;no one who treads on
them knows peace.

So
how can God stand to be anywhere near us? Only through Jesus Christ!
He, as our Redeemer, has made us His worthy bride. 'Christ
loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might
sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the
word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor,
without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and
without blemish'.

This
is how God demonstrate His love for us. Not by waiting for us to be
His holy bride by our works or waiting for us to somehow atone for
our sins and cleanse ourselves from all our unrighteousness. No.
Remember, my friend, we are talking about an arranged marriage and
God our Father made this arrangement.

In
the words of Luther: 'God
beheld our wretched state before the world's foundation, and mindful
of His mercies great, He planned for our salvation. He turned to us
a father's heart; He did not choose the easy part but gave His
dearest treasure. God said to His beloved Son: 'It's time to have
compassion. Then go, bright jewel of My crown, and bring to all
salvation. From sin and sorrow set them free; slay bitter death for
them that they may live with you forever'. 'The Son obeyed His
Father's will, was born of virgin mother; and God's good pleasure to
fulfill, He came to be my brother'
(or, to return to the marriage metaphor – my
bridegroom).

This
was the arranged marriage. 'while we were yet sinners Christ died
for us' (Rom. 5.8). First He took on human flesh and blood as man.
Then, to make the only successful atonement for human sin, He shed
His human, yet holy blood and sacrificed Himself for human
salvation. And then, to give us certainty that we are saved as
individuals, He gave us the 'water and the word' of the Sacrament of
Baptism.

In
that washing of renewal, my friends, we are truly made new before
God. We can enter into the presence of God, in a white wedding gown
as a worthy Bride – but only because God Himself, in His grace and
mercy for Christ's sake, has made us worthy to wear white. Just as
He has done for those who are with Him in Heaven now, who have 'come
out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made
them white in the blood of the Lamb'
(Rev. 7.14).

'Hasten,
as a bride to meet Him, and with loving rev'rence greet Him. For
with words of life immortal He is knocking at your portal. Open wide
the gates before Him, Saying, as you there adore Him; Grant, Lord,
that I now receive You, that I nevermore will leave You'.*
Amen.

About Me

A Missionary and Theological Educator in the Latin American Region of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod's Office of International Missions, I have served for twenty-one years in Britain, and thirteen years in America. I love my life, my wife, my six children, their spouses and my fifteen grand-children!